Tristan B's 2001 Chevrolet S-10

During my first few years at Crutchfield, I served as one of our Advisors, helping our customers choose new audio components for their homes and cars. Eventually, I moved to the writing team and spent a decade researching new products and getting even more hands-on with car audio gear.

I've performed many car and home audio installations over the years, some of them even on my own cars. As the editor of Crutchfield's car audio web articles, I couldn't ask for a cooler job. We listen to music and play with car audio gear every day!

Like most of us here, I've always been into music. I installed my first car stereo system before the family car was even mine. In college, I helped friends and roommates install their car stereos and set up the stereos in their apartments. I was a volunteer DJ for the local community radio station for a few years (playing late night metal and Sunday morning bluegrass & alt-country). That's where I also first learned a little bit about sound mixers.

These days, I serve my community by volunteering as the District Commissioner for my local district of the Boys Scouts of America. I also love playing board games & RPGs, spending time with my family, and installing new audio systems for my friends.

More about Robert

Started at Crutchfield in 1999

Completed our thorough in-house Advisor training, learning about the ins and outs of our various products

Stays up-to-date by attending vendor training sessions for new products

Items installed:

Installation Description

I worked as a professional installer for many years, so car stereo installation has become second nature -- in fact, the more unique and the more challenging the installation, the better I like it. A standard cab truck with a high-Q woofer is one of the toughest. Besides, this truck is for racing, not car audio competitions, so I've done my best to keep the equipment lightweight and to a minimum, but without compromising the sound. The current stereo has been in place since I bought the truck new. Only 42,000 original miles later, it's still loud and clear.

Q&A Section

Why did you decide to upgrade your A/V system?

Stock systems sound terrible. And are unimpressive at car shows.

What's the first thing you show people about your installation?

All of it -- and how clean it looks and sounds.

Why did you choose these products?

I have had outstanding experience with both Pioneer and Kicker from my competition days.

What was the most difficult part of the installation?

Designing a box that would fit behind the seat of a standard cab S-10, but produce tight and low bass.